Classical+India

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 * ESPIRIT Chart **

Civilization/Nation/Group: __Classical India__

Time Period: _1000 BCE- 500 CE  M


 * E ||  **India's economy was based on agriculture and trade with foreign nations**   **Caste system-**assigned to occupations and regulated marriages- low-caste people had few rights; __Indian emphasis on trade was greater than in China__; economy rivaled China; __advances in steel, textiles, manufacturing, and ironworking__ //put them ahead of China for a short time//; they were more advanced that Europeans at that time period; **traded by sea** to the Middle East and East Asia; **economy was agricultural based;**  ||
 * S || **India's caste system emphasized men's and merchant's dominance;** married womern had arranged marriages, few rights and had to worship their husbands; Chinese women had more rights; __society divided up by caste- brahman(highest), merchants, and untouchables (lowest);__ untouchables had little contact with upper class- merchants were lower than peasants in China; merchants stimulated Indian economy ||
 * P || **Politics in India were based on local and regional governments, which in turn, placed less emphasis on gevernment in India because there was a lack of centralized power;** India's gov't was not elaborate, no formal political theories that carried over like China's dynasties; gov't established __caste system__ that was interpreted by priests which __promoted public order__; Indian rulers depended heavily on power of large armies; there were aotucratic kings and emperors served as leaders, but in some cases aristocratic assemblies decided on major issues ||
 * I || **India was the entrepot of civilizations at this time... classical era; China was isloated and only traded with middle east;** both countries influenced by trading; traded textiles and cotton goods to all civilizations; __India had control of seas and trade routes;__ china and India developed caravan trade by land; brought back new goods from other countries like slaves and pottery; spread culture through trade and not political dominance ||
 * R || **Hinduism- no central holy figure; had many religious approaches;**Vishnu the destroyer and Shiva the protector were some of the gods in Indian religion; Indians believed in reincarnation; Buddha was an Indian mystic; **Buddhism- denied spiritual value of people; wasn't permanently followed in India;** Buddhism focused on yoga and meditation ||
 * I || __India had control of seas and trade routes;__ china and India developed caravan trade by land; politics were based on local and regional governments; no centralized government was needed; **India basically controlled the trading world because China wasn't mainly focused economical trade** ||
 * T || **Classical India was more connected with the world than China making able to pull ahead**; trading by sea was a technological advancement over China because China was isolated and India had the geographical advantage of being closer to trading countries and being a peninsula; sea trade really put India on the map ||
 * __CLASSICAL INDIA SUMMARY__**


 * Classical India was very focused on trading.** They often competed with China. Because Indians were more focused on trading than China, they were able to pull ahead. India traded by sea to the Middle East and East Asia. India's economy was purely based on agriculture and trade. The **caste system** in India showed the dominance of males. Women had few rights and their marriages were pre-arranged. They often had to worship their husbands. B__rahman were the highest on the caste system scale: then merchants, and untouchables.__ The __merchant class was very important__ to the Indian society and economy. Local and regional governments controlled India. This placed **less emphasis on a less centralized government**. There were no formal political theories or government standards. __The caste system provided public order__.**Buddhism and Hinduism were the two widely accepted religions in India.** Hinduism didn't have a central holy figure, but many different gods. Gurus were mystics of Hinduism and the were supported by Brahman. Two of Hinduism's most famous gods were Vishnu the preserver and Shiva the destroyer. Buddhism had Buddha as a god and took spirituality out of religion- focused on yoga and meditation. Buddhism believed in **Dharma**, which was a set of moral consequences which helped **Ashoka** to unite the people of India under his government. Ashoka was the governor of 2 Indian states. He was brutal and he spread Buddhism while still considering the values of Hinduism. The development of India came from the **Aryans** who were hunters and herders from Central Asia. They traveled to India and began using agriculture around 1500 BCE. They helped extend agriculture from from the Indus River to the Ganges Valley. It is safe to say that the Aryans helping in making India very successful in the agricultural and trading department. Finally, the Aryans developed **sanskrit** writing in India, which was the first literary language of India.

Terms for Classical India ||
 * Aryans || Traveled to India; hunting and herding peoples from central Asia; began using agriculture during the Vedic Age from 1500 BCE to 1000 BCE; helped extend agriculture from the Indus River to the Ganges valley; used iron tools; passed down **Sanskrit-** first literary language of the Indian culture ||
 * Ashoka || Chandragupta’s grandson (269 - 232 BCE); served as a governor of 2 Indian provinces; had a strong spiritual influence from Brahmin religion and Buddhism; he was a brutal leader who wanted to expand India’s territory; converted to **Buddhism** – **dharma**- law of moral consequences; he spread **Buddhism** while honoring **Hinduism** ||
 * Gupta || Line of kings after collapse of Kushan state in 220 BCE; established a large empire in 320 BCE; empire overturned in 535 BCE by the Huns ||
 * Caste system || Political structure that divided the people into classes; Brahmin ( highest) merchants, untouchables (lowest); kept people in line and out of trouble; low-caste people had less rights; women had even lesser rights;[[image:caste.jpeg]] ||
 * Hinduism || Major religion in India; developed by the Aryans; had no single founder, no central holy figure; encouraged political and economic goals (artha) and worldly pleasures (karma); it was successful because the religion adapted to people’s needs; __reincarnation__ was part of the religion; **Vishu** the preserver and **Shiva** the destroyer were worshiped; **Bhagavad Gita** was the religious book of Hinduism ||
 * Sanskrit || Developed by the Aryans; first literary language of Indian culture; they were literary epics known as Vedas- “knowledge”; __Mahabharata and Ramayana were very popular epics;__ of **Upanishads** ||
 * Upanishads || epics with more mystical religious flavor; part of the Epic Age in Indian culture ||
 * Dharma || Set of moral consequences; ethical guide to help **Ashoka** unite and discipline the people under his rule;
 * Buddhism || Hindu thinker who invented Buddhism; denied the spiritual value of the **caste system**, performance of rituals, and priests; attracted many followers in India; had much Brahman opposition; ||
 * Tamils || Indian language; one of the oldest existing languages today; ||
 * Chandragupta Maurya || 322 BCE gained control of the Ganges River; first of the **Mauryan** dynasty; highly autocratic gov’t- relied on personal and military power; passed his power onto his son and became a religious ascetic ||
 * Gurus || Aka mystics; followed Hinduism and was supported by Brahman; Vishu the preserver and Shiva the destroyer were worshiped because they were the gods in Hinduism ||
 * Bhagavad Gita || Holy book of Hinduism; followed by Hindus and Brahman ||